Carpet-cleaning machine.



J. R. POWELL.

CARPET CLEANING MACHINE. f

APPLICATION man Aus. 1x. 1913.

Patented Oct. 5, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 I 5141;@ niet.' 6)

62/01 fname o R. POWELL.

CARPET CLEANING MACHINE.y

APPLICATION FILED Aue. II. I9Is.

Patented Oct. 5, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEETI WLM/Lewes .I

'Y cleaning carpets, or other articles of the.

'same description in which the dust and dirt CARPET-CLEANING MACHINE.

Application filed Aug'ust 11, 1913. serial No. 784,143.

by means of which carpets or rugs may be I thoroughly cleaned of substantially all dust and vdirt by brushing, suction or steam, or combinations of the foregoing.

- One of the objects of the invention is to provide a simple-,mechanism forthorojughly removed from the carpet does not escape 4 into the room, butis removed'by suction.

Another object is to combine an air suction and' other cleaning meanswith a novel revolving w1re carrier for' the article to be Y cleaned which will permit free access of air to the article and properly support the article for its movement in either direction past the cleaning devices. l*

Further features include the novel means for supporting the wire conveyer and maintainingrthe same at a proper tension, and the novel driving mechanism therefor.

Other objects andl novel features of the 1 invention will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the drawings in which,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a 'machine embodyingmy invention; Fig. 2 lis a plan view of the same, Fig. 3 is a detail view showing the-construction of the woven wire i fabriccarrier or conveyer-and one of its supporting drums, and Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail of the same.

' Referring to the drawings, 10designates a narrow endless belt carrier or conveyer made of vwovenV wire fabric, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 and is edged 'with brass or other soft metal'to .provide a selvage 11 at each-edge. The selvage 11 is provided with perforations 12 at intervals lengthwise ofv the same, and spaced apart a sufficient' distance'to receive the teeth 13 o f a sprocket 14 formed at the end ofeach of thg'supporting drums 15 and 1'6 around which the endless.

- conveyer passes.. It will be noted that'the machine has a plurality of separatedrpms which has the advantage that the woven Wire fabric can be made up in narrow l Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented 001.5, 1915.

widths'which lessens the sagging ofthe fabric and also makes it possible to manufacture the cleaning machine in any desirable number of widths of single narrow conmany as desired, depending onthe width of the material to be cleaned.

srafrns rarnNr orrion JOHN n. POWELL, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

The drums 1 5 and 1 6, around which the conveyer belts 10- pass, are compo-sed of cyllinders of wood, iron or other suitable material,` and are provided with sprockets at o their ends while fastened to the faces of the drums intermediate the ends of the'sprockets there lare a number of. longitudinally extendlng thln vertical metal ribs 17 which engage -the spaces in the wire fabric between the looped vpartsof the wires comprising the fabric, as shown ing Figs. 3 and 4. The -wire fabric is so woven that the,I looped-together parts of the Wires lie in straight lines, the lines of wires extending across the -fabric being so disposed as to lie substantially parallel to the ribs 17 4 of the drums whereby the latter engage between the crosswise extend-v ing wires and have a better gripping action on the carrier belt. The carrier thus grips the drums at a number of points transversely of the web so that the carrier and the carpet or rug thereon will not be pulled out of shape at the center, since the, wire '.carrier is kept at an even tension between the edges as well as at the edges thereof. Furthermore on account of the retarding forceeXerted by i the suction cleaning device 48,l which eX-l tends across the carrier and draws the arti'- cle thereon and ther carrierupto it, it is essential that there'be some positiveenga'gement between the drum and the web orv carrier all the way across the latter as an ordinary friction drive is not adequate.

The drums 15 and 16 areV each supported l `lby 'pedestals 18, the bases of which are fastened to base-plates 19 which are bolted to the fioor. Lugs 20 are cast integral with the 'A base frames 19 and are threaded to-receive adjusting bolts 21 which engage the bases f the pedestals .18 and by means of ina well known manner, the said pedestals'f -may be adjusted in either direction to ltighten or loosen up the -wirefabric incase it stretches or becomes too tight during the operation of the machine. TheVpedestals 18 are alsoprovided withset screws122 which bear at theirl inner ends against movable veyers. Furthermore, it'reduces the expense Y of weaving the wire in greater widths, makes 1t possible to -operate a single width or as table, while therollers 29, supported on the .zontal upper and lower connecting members 26 and 27. rlhe upper horizontal members 26 rotatably support a series of rollers 28 which contact with theunder surface' of the wire fabric conveyer 10 and are freely rotalower horizontal member 27 contact with the outer surface of the material supported on the wire-conveyer, and are also freely rotatable. rlhe rollers 28 and 29 may extend. across one or two or more widths of conveyer, as is clearly shown in the plan view. The frame and rollers thus support the weighted conveyer so that'there will 'be no sag at the center, thereby eliminating the tendency to stretch at this point.

r1`he endless carrier or conveyer is driven 30/in` one direction by means of the pulley 30 which is fastened to the shafting 31 of the drum 16. The pulley 30 derives its power from the pulley 32 by means of the belt 33. The pulleyt32 is keyed to the counter-shaft 34 which is driven by lthe pulley 36 and belt 35 which connects the same to the electric motor 37. Adjacent the pulley 30 there is 'a pulley 38 loose on the shaft 31 and to which the belt 33 may be shifted by means of a'suitable shifter 39. `Another fast pulley 40 and loose pulley 41are mounted on the shaft 31 and the cross belt 42 passing over the pulley 43 on' the` counter-shaft 34 delivers power to the pulley 40 to run the same in a direction oppositeto the pulley 30. A suitable belt shifter 44 is provided to shift the belt 42 from the pulley 40 to the pulley 41 or vice versa, as desired. '1.

Acylindrical'brush'lt is supported at its ends by the upright brackets 46 and 47 mounted on the frame 25, or the center may fbe supported from a hanger suspended from the ceiling or mounted on the floor of the room. 1n traveling in Lvthe direction from vleft to right the rug, carpet or article :to be cleaned, is brought in contact with the brush 45, but the latter is kept high enough away from the rug or .carpet so as not to injure the fabric but merely to freshen the nap before it passes under the airsuction head 48, the inlet slot of which extends across the entie` width of the conveyer. The brush 45 is driven by the pulley 49 which is fastened to the shaft of the brush and power -is delivered to said pulley .from the shaft l31 by `desired by merely shifting the bar 52. The

brush 45 serves to liven up the rug or carpet. steam pipe 54 having a spray outlet head at its upper end and extending across the lower side of the wire conveyer is adapted to supply a steam spray, to the material being cleaned. f

rfables 56 and 57 arelocated at opposite -ends of the conveyer. .The tables 56 and 57 are made up of endless belts 58 of a woven wire fabric like that shown in Fig. 4. rthe belts 58 pass around the end rollers 59 and 60 and are supported intermediate the rollers 59 and 60 by the rollers 61, which act in much the same manner as the rollers 28 on the frame 25. r1`he table 57 is the same in construction as the table 56. Suitable supporting frames are provided for the rollers on the tables and powerto move the wire belts on the table 56 is derived from the end 62 of shaft 24 of the drums 15 and transmitted to the end roller 59 by means of the belt 63, which passes over suitable pulleys connected to the respective shafts..

rlhe arrangement for driving the wire belt forming the table 57 is substantially the same, but it will be seen that Whenthe top of the conveyer is driven from left to right the wire belt of the stable' 56 will feed to ward the conveyer, while the wire belt of the' table 57 will feed from the conveyer, whereas if the feed of the conveyer is reversed the feed of the wire tables will be reversed in a similar manner. and the table 57 will feed toward the conveyer, while the table 56 will feed away from the drum 15.

rlthe overhead carriage 67 running on the suppo-rting track 68 placed above and at right angles to the conveyer has a chain block 69 depending therefrom so that any heavy rugs or carpets can be readily placed on the co-nveyer.

The' arrangement shown and described provides a cleaning machine in ,which the rug'or carpet can be placed in position on the conveyer Where it is cleaned Without undue labor or time. llt can be attached to the conveyer and given several cleanings without removing it therefrom. A conveyer of this typecanI be constructed large enough to be able to carry the largestrug or carpet running all 4of the Widths and the combined length of the suction inlets while, by means o-f suitable slides in the heads of the suction device, the inlet openings can be claim is:

reduced so that when only .a single width of conveyer is used and ay narrow rug or carpet is to be cleaned the power and suction necessary may be greatly economized. The slides are designated by the numeral 48 in Fig. 2, two of the slides 'being shown as partly open. The conveyer and other parts of the machine are accessible for the purpose of lubrication or repairs and thevoperation of the same will be readily apparent from the foregoing description.-

As various changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention,-

I do not wish to be limited to the exact details as shown and described.

Having described my invention what I l 1. In a cleaning machine of the class described, the combination of a carrier for the article to be cleaned, means for removing dust from the article supported by said carrier, a traveling device at one end of the ,carrier to receive the article being cleaned as it leaves the carrier, and means for driving -said device in either direction whereby it is capable of removing the article from adjacent the end of'said carrier when traveling .in one direction and capableof moving the article toward the carrier when traveling in the opposite direction. i 2. In a cleaning,` machine of the classy described, the combination of a pair of spaced drums, a carrier for the article to be cleaned comprising an endless loop passing around the drums, means located in a position to remove dust 'from the article on said carrier, and traveling devices at the ends of said carrier to receive the article and remove it from ladjacent either end of said' carrier as it leaves the latter.

3. In a cleaning machine of the class described, the v'combination of a carrier capable of supporting the article while it is being cleaned, means for cleaning the article supported on -said carrier, and a travelingdevice at one end of the carrier to receive the article as it leaves the carrier, and means for driving said carrier and said device in either direction, whereby the latter is capable of removing the article from adjacent the end of said carrier when the device travels in'one direction and capable of moving the" article toward the carrier when the device travels in the opposite direction, said driving means being readily reversible so that the article may be moved back and forth past said cleaning means a plurality of times successively. p

4. In a cleaning machine of the class described, the combination of a series of pairs of spaced drums arranged side by side, a

separate conveyer passing around each pair of drums, means for drivlng any number of said separate conveyers 1n accordance with` the width of the article to be cleaned, .and

means for removing dust from the article or articles carried by said conveyers.

5. In a cleaning machine of the class described, the combination ofl a series of pairs of spaced drums, an endless conveyer for the article or articles to be cleaned passing around each pair of drums, means for driving any one set of drums and'conveyers in either direction, and meansextending across the conveyers for removing dust from the article or articles carried thereby. i

A 6. In a cleaning machine of the class described, the combination of a carrier for the article to be cleaned, meansfor removing dust fromA the articlesup'ported by said carrier, a traveling device at each end of the carrier capable of supporting'the article being cleaned, the device at one end of the carrier being capable of moving thev article toward that end of said carrier and the device at the opposite end of the carrier being capable of moving the article away from sald opposite end, means whereby said carrier and the devices at its opposite ends may be driven in the same direction, and means for reversing the direction of said driving means whereby the article may be passed through said machine and back and forthpast said dust removing means a plurality of times successively, each of said traveling devices 'alternately serving as a receiving device and as a feeding device for said article. 7. In a cleaning machine, the combination of a plurality of carriers, means whereby any-number of said carriers may be oper- 106 of carriers being operated.

8. In a cleaning machine of the class dcscribed, the combination of a yplurality of 1l@ pairs of spaced drums, a plurality of carriers, one mounted on each pair of drums, a suction head having an inlet opening extendmg transversely of and disposed adjacent the upper surfaces of the carriers, and means whereby any numberv of said carriers may be operated to move said article past the inlet in said suction head.

9. In a :cleaning machine of the class described, the combination of a plurality o f 129 pairs of spaced drums, a plurality of -foramyinous carriers, one mounted on each pair of. drums, dust removing means above and between the ends of the carriers and extending transversely of and close to the top sur- 135 faces thereof to draw air therethrough and through the article to be cleaned, and means whereby any number of said carriers may be operated to move the article to be cleaned past said dust removing means. 130

10. ln a cleaning machine of the class described, the combination of a plurality ofpairs of spaced drums, a plurality of horizontally arranged endless foraminous carriers, one mounted on and passing around each pair of drums, devices between the ends of the carriers for supporting the sides thereof, a suction head between the ends of the carriers and extending transversely thereof, said head having an inlet opening disposed close to the top surface of each of the carriers to draw air through the foram- .inous carriers and dust from the article or articles to be cleaned, means whereby any number of said carriers may be operated to move said article past the inlet opening in said suction head, and means for varying the length of the suction mouth in accordance with the number of carriers being operated.

11.111 a cleaning machine of the class described, the combination of a plurality of separate carriers, means whereby any desired 'number of said carriers may be operated, and means for removing dust from the article or articles on the carrier 0r carriers being operated. y

lin testimony whereof ll affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

, JUHN R. POWELL.

Witnesses:

MATTHEW A. POWELL, NATHEN BUDEN. 

